


Moral Injury

by Gamebird



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Cameo by Caluan Ematt, Hux Whump, M/M, Some hurt/comfort, alien child
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 02:55:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25576180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gamebird/pseuds/Gamebird
Summary: Poe Dameron crosses paths with General Hux in a city being ruined between the forces of the Order and the Resistance. Hux's intentions of taking an orphaned child to safety are thwarted by Poe's intention of taking such a high-value prisoner with him on his way back to the Resistance. Who will win? And more importantly, what happens to the innocents caught between such forces?
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Armitage Hux
Comments: 19
Kudos: 95





	Moral Injury

Poe slewed around the sky in his ship, stabilizers sputtering out after the laser punctured the shields and shot through the craft. The ship skewed downward almost immediately and his attempts to reroute power didn't do any good. The ground was coming up fast. The ship began to spin in what he knew was a death spiral. He managed to manually fire one maneuvering jet. It jerked the ship sideways, setting the spin horizontal as well as along its axis. It was enough to make it safe to jettison.

He landed close enough to feel the heat from the starfighter's fireball, his knees buckling with the hard impact. Once on his feet, he slashed himself free of the parachute cords and looked around. The village, town, whatever it was, was in ruins. Most of the buildings were rubble. Smoke rose from a score of places within his sight – a few of these his own handiwork. The sky above was quieter than he'd like it, as he'd been one of the last fighters on the scene to challenge the First Order occupation. He hadn't even seen the emplacement that took him out.

There were still First Order troopers around. He'd spotted several bands running through the streets and even taken potshots at a few. He pulled his blaster and headed for the nearest sounds of battle. He wasn't done fighting yet.

* * *

Somewhat later, Poe caught a glimpse of a grey-black uniform through the smoke – a First Order officer. The figure was holding something in both arms, preoccupied and moving slowly across the rubble. Poe tried to close quietly, but his hope of gaining surprise was foiled by the wail of a young one. The officer – orange-haired and pale-skinned – glanced back, saw him, and shifted his burden to his far hip, putting his body between Poe and whatever it was.

The thing darted a glimpse over the man's shoulder, looking at Poe. It was a child, Poe saw. She was one of the pinkish-purple natives, probably related in some fashion to Twi'leks. They looked similar, except these had shorter lekku. The ones on the child were little more than nubs.

While Poe took that in, the man tried to put the child on the ground, but the child resisted. She clung to him, whimpering words Poe couldn't catch, obviously terrified. Poe still had his blaster leveled at the pair. The man had a pistol on his hip. As Poe took in the uniform, he realized he had a general in front of him. All at once he recognized the guy – General Hux, though covered with dust and with his hair in disarray.

"Put your hands up!" Poe barked after the realization, and none too gently. Hux looked over his shoulder to give him a positively malevolent glare. Poe took several steps closer, blaster extended.

The child squealed in visceral fear and welded herself to Hux's leg. Grimacing, Hux moved his hands slowly, outward to each side. They were empty at least, but it wasn't the pose of surrender Poe wanted. Hux had been talking to the child before in a whisper. Closer now (and Hux being less quiet), Poe could make out what he was saying to her. "You have to go. Hide. Find shelter."

"No!" she said back in a forced, ragged whisper. "The bad man will shoot you!"

"Yes, he will shoot me. That's why you have to go."

"No! After he shoot you, what will be me? He will shoot _me_!"

Hux sighed, directing a grudging look at Poe's blaster before looking back to her. "You should run."

"Gramma's place gone and Mumma and Puppa dead and everyone gone!"

Hux rested a gloved hand on the child's head, quieting her. He looked to Poe again, this time meeting his eyes instead of just seeing the muzzle of the weapon.

"I'm not going to shoot the kid," Poe grumbled, some of the thrill of capturing such a high-value target fading as he realized he was the 'bad man' in this situation. Both Hux and the child looked at him so distrustfully that Poe's stance softened. His blaster dropped a few inches. Poe asked, "What are you even doing with a kid?"

"I was taking her to safety," Hux said. "To the Order."

"That's not safety!"

"Yes, it is! Should I leave her here? This is a war zone!"

Poe blinked and let his blaster fall a few more inches, surprised by the man's vehemence. "The Resistance can help her."

"No, they can't! You're a bunch of filthy insurgents! Guerilla fighters constantly on the move. You don't even have a consistent base of operations."

Well, okay, he had him there. "The Order's just going to turn her into a stormtrooper."

"As if that's bad? She will be fed and taken care of and given purpose and meaningful _work_!"

"Meaningful work killing people, you mean?"

"Like your life is any different?"

The barb was so stinging and true that Poe nearly missed Hux going for his blaster pistol. Nearly. In a contest between a man who had a blaster drawn and more or less pointed and one who had to pull it from his holster, the ready man usually won. Poe shot him. The child screamed. Hux fell. But he wasn't dead.

Poe's blaster was set to penetrate stormtrooper armor. It shot right through Hux's unarmored body – painful and debilitating, but it would be long seconds before the injury made him nonfunctional, if at all. And besides, Poe had shot him in the shoulder or the collarbone, having made a quick yank upward toward center of mass and overcompensating upward to make sure he didn't hit the kid. The kid who was, at this moment, throwing herself on Hux's torso with an anguished wail. Bad in that this blocked Poe's shot. Good in that it momentarily slowed Hux from lining the pistol up on Poe. Definitely not dead.

Poe jumped at him, moving quick enough that Hux's shot missed. He grabbed the man's forearm, dropping his own blaster to wrest Hux's from him. The child lunged at Poe and bit him on the arm that took up the new weapon. His flight suit took most of it, but he could feel her sharp teeth anyway. He shook his arm, pushing on her face with his free hand, trying to get her to let go without hurting her.

Meanwhile, Hux grabbed up Poe's discarded blaster. Poe tried to point Hux's own blaster at him, but that was the arm with a berserk youngling still attached to it. Even if she wasn't lacerating him with her teeth, she was still spoiling his aim. He felt the muzzle of his blaster shove against his ribs and knew it was over. He looked down, even knowing there was no way he could move fast enough to knock the gun away.

He didn't need to. One of the kid's flailing feet kicked the barrel of the blaster just before Hux pulled the trigger. The resulting shot grazed Poe's side instead of blowing out his guts. At the sound of the shot, the kid let go with a squeal, falling to the side. Poe put Hux's own blaster in the man's face and pulled the trigger, decisive and angry.

Nothing happened.

"Heh," Hux said, looking hysterically amused.

"Kriff." The damn thing must be bio-locked. Poe fell flat on the man, twisting to put both his hands on the arm with a blaster that was again seeking him as a target. Hux grunted as the air was driven out of him. The child clawed at Poe's hair. The struggle was not long – two of Poe's hands versus one of Hux's left Poe with the blaster. He rolled off, losing some hair in the process and half dragging the kid with him. Poe spun, coming up on one knee, blaster extended.

The kid was in the way again, directly between the two of them. Her eyes flashed wide. Poe panted, the tip of the blaster wavering as it remained pointed at her, and beyond her, at Hux. Technically, given his blaster's current settings, her small body wasn't a functional shield. Morally though …

The child backed up two small steps, directly back. Hux touched her on the shoulder. "Move, child," he said in a voice that was gentle and soft, despite him, too, breathing hard. "Keep yourself safe." He guided her out of the way, giving Poe a clear shot at where he still lay on the ground.

Poe took a deep breath, then another. Hux was watching him steadily, just waiting. He looked angry, but his gaze didn't waiver and he didn't seem to be contemplating any last ditch ploy. The child whimpered to the side, saying, "I don't want you to die, too!"

Hux swallowed and told her, "Stay out of the way," without ever taking his eyes off Poe. Poe stood, keeping his weapon trained on the man. Hux's expression shifted to a sneer. Hux said, "You need to put yourself above me to kill me? Is that it?"

Poe spared a quick glance to spot Hux's blaster, then kicked it far away. Back to Hux, he said, "Get up."

Hux gave his lost weapon a surly look, then put his good hand to his opposite shoulder, reaching over the top of it to touch at the exit wound. He looked at his glove and rubbed his fingertips together. Poe assumed they were wet with blood. Hux finally obeyed and got to his feet. The child hugged his leg again. He touched her forehead, smearing her with red. He frowned and reached into a pocket.

Poe surged forward. "Don't!" He grabbed the man's forearm. It was … there was something on it. He took a few quick steps back. "Take that off."

"I was only reaching for something to clean her with."

"That thing on your arm," Poe said, refusing to be distracted. "That device. Take it off."

Hux sighed. He rotated his wrist, fingers curled, and ended with a knife in his hand.

"Drop it," Poe commanded. "Don't do anything funny. I see you thinking about it."

"Why haven't you already killed me?" He had not yet dropped the knife.

Poe bared his teeth slightly and took another step back. "You're a general. You're a valuable prisoner." Though really, he didn't want to kill him right in front of the kid. The kid obviously liked him. Hux's fingers toyed with the knife in the manner of one who was very practiced with it. "Don't," Poe said, quieter this time, grasping at straws for a way to keep the situation from devolving again. "If you die, you leave her all alone."

Hux glanced down at the child who was clinging to his leg. He looked back to Poe. "I hardly know her."

While that was probably true, Poe believed he was bluffing, trying to pretend he didn't care about her when he clearly did. "You sure you want to leave her here with me? Me, the bad man?"

Hux smiled thinly. "What a confession," he said richly. He threw the knife aside, in the same direction as his blaster earlier.

"Yeah, whatever," Poe said. "Now pick the kid up and we march."

Hux glared at him, but didn't argue. He knelt and took up the child with his good arm. She wrapped her legs around him as much as she could, bracing herself on his gun belt and grabbing fistfuls of fabric. Hux's other arm hung limp. He didn't act like it pained him, but he hadn't moved it since it had been shot.

They marched. Poe guided them the opposite direction from First Order occupation, hoping to find something in the way of Resistance extraction. They hadn't planned on ground troops, so it was a slim hope. Mostly, he needed to put distance between himself and the front lines, plus keep his eyes out for communication devices or better yet, ships.

But he found none of those in their path and what ships passed overhead went fast and didn't stop. They walked through one bombed out district after another. They stepped over bodies in the street. They weaved their way around rubble and smoke. Poe kept Hux in front of him. He kept his blaster out and at least half an eye on the man at all times. But it seemed the idea of burdening him with the kid had been a good one. Hux didn't try anything at first, but as the evening wore on, he adjusted the waif's position more times than Poe was comfortable with and he became slower to follow Poe's directions.

"Left!" Poe barked at him. "I said left!"

Hux reoriented clumsily, tripped on a loose stone on the ground, and toppled. He twisted on the way down, falling on his injured shoulder instead of on the child. The child shrieked, caught by surprise, and scrambled away. She looked at Poe accusingly. (Not for the first time – she'd shot him every displeased look a youngling knew how to give in the hour or two that they'd traveled.)

Hux made several shuddering sounds of agony before he got control of himself. He fell silent aside from his ragged breathing. Poe waited, suspicious of a ruse even though he had his doubts that the best actor in the galaxy could have faked those noises. The man didn't rise, didn't move. With a sigh, Poe finally holstered his blaster and fastened the holster clamp to slow down any attempt to take it from him. He walked closer. "Hux?"

No response. The child scurried out of Poe's way as he knelt next to Hux's shoulder – the good one. He rested a hand on it. "Hux?" No answer. The breathing was too heavy for him to be unconscious. "General Hux?" He shook him slightly.

Hux turned his head. He tried to move to get up. He seemed sloppy, his motions uncoordinated. It might still be a ruse, but then again, it might not. Poe took the risk. He took Hux's wrist, pulled the man's good arm over his shoulders, and stood. The child, who had no shoes, fell in on the other side as they started off. Poe said, "We're going in that building there to find cover and camp for the night. Just over there."

Hux leaned on him heavily and didn't try anything. By the time they were inside the bombed out storefront, Poe was convinced Hux wasn't even _able_ to try anything. He deposited him carefully, leaving him sitting up with his back leaned against the half-wall of what was once the front counter. As soon as Poe stepped away, the little girl inserted herself under Hux's good arm.

Poe scanned the area. It looked like a business that sold fasteners of various kinds – nuts, bolts, screws, pins, washers. Nothing immediately useful. He returned to Hux's side, kneeling next to the injured side. "Let's take a look at you."

He did a quick pat-down – no further weapons or devices that he found. The child scowled at him. Hux seemed out of it, half-conscious. Poe inspected the code cylinders inset behind Hux's belt buckle, but they seemed to be only what they appeared. By the time the Resistance obtained the security clearance codes within them, they'd be obsolete. He put them back. Hux grunted.

"Let's take a look at that wound," Poe said. He started unfastening Hux's tunic.

Hux opened his eyes to a slit. "I didn't know we were on such terms … Dameron, isn't it?" He was otherwise motionless.

"Yeah, that's my name. Good memory, there." He finished with the tunic, peeling it aside to worry at the undertunic. "How many layers do you have on?"

"Three."

"Well, can you get your arm up here?" Poe touched the forearm of the injured limb. Hux didn't react to it.

"No."

Poe huffed. "Can I cut this?" He tugged at the undertunic.

"The fastener for it is on the side. I would prefer you not cut it."

"Well- Then-" Poe pulled the tunic to the side, reaching in over blood-spotted fabric to finger at sweat-damp seams, eventually working out how to open the garment. And yes, there was a thin garment under it – a singlet or something. On the front, there wasn't much blood. The back was likely saturated. There was no way to get the singlet off except by pulling it over Hux's head, which wouldn't work without sitting him up straight and taking off both top layers of clothing. He took out the strap-cutter for his parachute and hooked it under Hux's jaw, slicing the strap to the side.

"Surely you could find the wound without having to do that?" Hux said, his tone bored but scathing anyway.

"Yeah, I see it." The entry wound was smaller than the tip of his finger. Before Hux's fall just moments earlier, it had likely been thoroughly clotted. Now it was seeping, but it wasn't the problem. Hux had started their journey with a black uniform turned grey from dust. Poe had watched as they'd marched, seeing the grey replaced by black and wet as the blood spread down Hux's back. Poe looked at Hux's face. His complexion was even more pasty than it had appeared in the holos Poe had seen. "You've bled a lot."

"Enough to … fall."

Poe nodded soberly.

"Is he going to die?" the little girl asked.

That was a good question. Poe hesitated. Hux said, "I know nothing of medicine."

"Me neither, really," Poe admitted.

Hux said, "The basics apply. I have not succumbed to shock, but I will at some point if the bleeding continues. If you keep me moving and working, it will kill me. I'm no use to you then. You might as well have shot me straight away and spared me the misery."

Poe grimaced. "Well, I didn't. Just stay put. Let me see if I can find something to help."

Hux didn't argue. Poe worried about letting the man out of his sight, but he wasn't going far. He went through the store and the small office area, knowing he wasn't going to find a tin of bacta or a medical suite tucked into a corner. Instead, he found a lavatory where the water didn't come on. Next to it, mounted on the wall, he found a first aid kit. Well, that was something. He hurried back.

"Hey, I found the-" Poe cut himself off as he came back to where the others were. They were huddled together in quiet conversation. Hux gave him the briefest glance, then turned back to the girl, giving her his complete attention as though Poe was not standing there holding medical supplies he might need to survive.

She was speaking, unperturbed by Poe's interruption. "My Puppa made shoes and sometimes he would fix them if they were broken."

"Ah," Hux said solemnly. "Shoes are very important." Poe set the kit on an intact portion of the counter. If Hux wasn't in a hurry, then neither was he.

She nodded. "What did your papa do?"

Poe opened the first aid kit, listening intently. He was tempted to interject that Brendol Hux had been a bloodthirsty general widely known for his sadism, but no one was asking him. Her question was innocent and he was curious about how Hux would portray Brendol.

Hux said, "My father was a teacher for children just like you, and some that were older. When he became very good at it, he became an administrator instead."

"What is a minnie traitor?"

"An administrator is someone who helps teachers do a better job and stay organized. What did you mother do?"

Well. That was interesting. He couldn't say Hux had lied, but it was definitely an answer tailored for the audience. Then again, weren't most answers? Poe pulled out antiseptic cleanser, ointment, and bandaging to tend to the slash on his side. It had burned relentlessly as they'd moved through the streets. He didn't think it was serious, but the sting of sweat in it was a constant irritant.

The girl said, "Mumma sold the shoes and ran the store. She and Puppa worked together. She talked to people a lot. What did your mumma do?"

Poe shrugged out of the flight suit to his waist so he could access his injury. Hux glanced over, did a double take, and eyed Poe's chest before jerking his eyes back to the child. "I'm sorry. You were saying?"

Well. That was even more interesting. Poe struggled to keep his expression flat in case Hux looked his way again. The girl said, "What did your mumma do?"

"She was a helper in the kitchen for all the schoolchildren."

"Did she make food?"

"I think so. I lost her when I was about your age. I have … few memories of her."

"How did you lose her?"

"There was a great battle on my home world similar to what's happening here on yours. We were separated. I never saw her again."

"She's probably dead," the child said bluntly. "Like my mumma."

Hux didn't take offense. "She probably is."

The child sniffed. "I'm going to miss my mumma. Do you miss yours?"

"Yes, child, I do." Hux's voice was tight. There was a slight catch in it.

The child hugged him. "I'm going to miss Puppa, too."

He hugged her back with his good arm. "Missing them means you love them. Sometimes that's all you have." He sighed.

Poe noted the lack of similar feeling for Brendol. Wound treated, he pulled up his flight suit and tried applying some of the surgical tape to the rent the blaster bolt had left in the fabric. While he worked, the girl slid down and curled up next to Hux, seemingly sleeping.

Poe came over to Hux's injured side and sat on the floor. He offered several chewable analgesics. "Painkiller." Hux nodded and took them. "You're good with children," Poe said quietly. "Where did that come from?"

"I helped my father with his students. I told them what I would have wanted to hear myself. It worked."

Poe studied him, wondering if Hux knew how much that small comment told on him and the conditions he'd likely grown up in. He didn't seem to. For him, it was just an explanation. Poe swabbed lightly around the small entry wound, dabbing it with what ointment the first aid kit had come with. It wasn't much and it wasn't bacta. He turned to prepare a bandage for it.

"And what about you?" Hux asked. "Single child, grew up apart from others of your age group?"

Poe huffed a laugh. "It's that obvious, huh?"

"It is. But am I accurate?"

Poe nodded, applying the bandage. "My mother passed when I was eight, a little older than ..." He gestured at the girl, and also at Hux. "We didn't socialize much after that – Papi and I. She wanted me to be a pilot, so that's what I spent my time doing."

"You're quite a good one."

"I really don't know what to do about your other side." Poe gestured at Hux's shoulder. "The first aid kit isn't designed to treat blaster wounds."

"Most blaster wounds are immediately fatal. There would be no point."

Poe grunted. Had his weapon been set properly for unarmored personnel, Hux would be dead and they wouldn't be having the conversation. "I could put a bandage over it."

Hux flashed him a true smile. "It is a kind offer, but I don't think it will make a difference."

"Maybe so." Poe looked at the little girl. "What are we going to do about her?"

"You should let me take her back to the First Order." He said it so reasonably, like it was obvious and Poe was just making a simple mistake in detaining him.

"And then you'd stay with them, right?"

Hux smiled a little. "There has been little in our interaction that I would consider a compelling reason to return."

Poe scoffed and joked, "Compelling? I can be pretty compelling. You haven't given me a chance."

"As you have not given me one?"

They eyed each other. Poe wasn't sure what to make of Hux's answer. He seemed very serious. "I didn't shoot you," Poe said more quietly, "because you were clearly putting that kid's life above your own. That was noble. I have to admit, I didn't expect that."

"You _did_ shoot me." The delivery was bone-dry, but it was teasing instead of an accusation.

"I didn't shoot you a second time," Poe clarified.

Hux smiled at him again. "You're very amusing. Perhaps not compelling … but definitely amusing."

"Am I?" Poe felt himself smiling back.

"You are."

Poe felt suddenly very conscious of their proximity – sitting here, next to him, facing him, the degree of eye contact, how intently Hux was regarding him. He looked so different when he smiled. He looked sort of coy and pleased right now. Poe tried to snap himself out of whatever inexplicable, misplaced infatuation he was feeling. The guy was trying to talk his way the guy was trying to talk his way free. There was nothing more to it than that. "General Organa would kill me if I let you go."

Hux took him seriously. "Then come with me."

Poe blinked at him. "Come with you?"

"Not all of our recruits are children."

Poe looked at the little girl, still baffled that Hux (or that _anyone_ ) might seriously try to sway him into joining the First Order. It was so surprising that he didn't even laugh in Hux's face like he probably should have. "Yeah, but … what would I be? Just some starter shiny?"

"You have skills," Hux said. "That would dictate your baseline rank. Of course, it could be higher depending on circumstance, or … recommendation."

"Are you flirting with me?" Poe blurted out, too weirded out by the whole direction of the conversation to know how else to take it. Was Hux joking? Was it all a ruse? Was it revenge for yanking the guy's leg over D'Qar?

"You have a very high opinion of yourself." Hux gestured to himself. "Also, I'm half dead."

"I've earned that opinion. And half dead means you're still half alive." Hux made a conceding nod of his head. Poe added, "Also, you didn't answer the question."

"It's an irrelevant question."

"No, that's pretty relevant." Okay, maybe it _wasn't_ just a guy trying to talk his way free.

"It's only relevant if you join me. Otherwise, we're enemies."

"I'm … uh … considering it," Poe got out. Not that he _was_ considering it. Was he? No, of course not. Was it flattering that Hux was asking? Or was he just desperate? Poe gave a little shake of his head. He was just buying time, that was all. "Um. There's a … we should talk about something else." He hit upon a topic. "I saw some bottles while I was looking around, but I can't read the local script. They might be drinks. The water system doesn't seem to be working."

"At this point, I'll drink anything."

"Hm. 'kay. I'll go grab some." He returned with the ones he'd seen earlier. He stopped himself before handing it over. "Can you use your arm at all? This one?"

Hux looked down at his hand where it lay awkwardly on the ground. Not a finger stirred. "No."

Poe took the hand and turned it carefully so it looked more normal. "Paralyzed?"

"I think so."

Poe unscrewed the cap on the bottle before giving it Hux. It wasn't the sort you could do one-handed, unless you used your teeth.

Hux sniffed at the one he'd been given, then sipped. "It tastes good."

The child stirred. "I wanna," she said. Hux handed her the bottle, which she proceeded to guzzle. He watched her drink the liquid he undoubtedly needed, possibly more than she did. He had a resigned expression.

Poe waited, but Hux didn't act like he expected another bottle, nor was he going to take it from the child. Poe opened another and handed it over. "Thank you," Hux said. Poe did notice he didn't bother with sipping it this time. Hux drained it before the girl could ask it of him. Poe finished off the third one, which was the smallest of the bottles.

Now that he knew there was more to be had, Hux searched Poe's body with his eyes, then the floor around him. Poe said, "That was all I found in sealed containers. I picked up these, though." He pulled a couple packets out of one of his pockets. "I think it's food."

"I-" the girl said, reaching out and then shrinking from him as she changed her mind and regarded Poe suspiciously. She looked to Hux. Hux nodded to her.

Poe offered her one of the packets. She took it cautiously, then tore open the package and began eating what looked like crunchy baked grains.

"Definitely food," Hux said.

Poe opened the other. Inside were six biscuits or cookies about the size of his palm, and thick. He gave Hux three. They were sweet, dense, and chewy. "I ought to go look around some more, but it's getting dark." Outside it was a rapidly dimming grey. Inside darkened faster.

"I would ask you to make one more search, though. Not on my behalf. It gets cold here at night. Very cold. Can you find her a cover or a blanket?"

Poe nodded. "On it." He'd seen some jackets hanging up, covered with dust and likely abandoned by the original occupants of the building. Or maybe they were just extras stowed here in case of late work or inclement weather. In any case, Poe was able to find them even in the deepening gloom and return before Hux had had time to get into mischief.

But Poe found him exactly where he'd been upon his departure. He handed over one of the coats. "I think this one's the thickest."

The girl had finished her drink and the baked grain nodules by now. She readily took the coat when Hux offered it. She snuggled up in it and curled at his side as she had earlier.

"That garment you're wearing," Hux asked, "is it a flight suit?"

"Yeah."

"Insulated to withstand the rigors of space itself. You should be fine tonight."

"That garment you're wearing," Poe said, copying his tone at least for the first bit, "insulated to parade up and down the deck on a climate-controlled star destroyer?"

"Yes."

"And you worked up a sweat, bled enough to pass out, and it's still open. Why haven't you closed this up?" Poe took on a teasing tone as he drew the fabric closed and bent to reseal the undertunic.

"I … didn't think about it."

"Or were you just trying to show off to match me earlier?"

Hux blushed, but he agreed. "Yes, perhaps that was it."

Poe paused with his fingers on the seal for the tunic. They were even closer than they had been earlier. Hux's eyes lingered on him. He looked better with the flushed skin. "Seriously," Poe asked with genuine concern, "just between me and you. Are you going to make it?"

Hux hesitated, seeming to consider several answers before finally saying, "I don't know."

Poe leaned away and picked up one of the lighter jackets. "Once you're in my custody, you're my responsibility." He spread the coat over Hux's torso and a second one over his hips.

"Forgive me for observing you're not a very responsible person then." He sounded grumpy.

Poe snorted. Was the guy angry he hadn't missed him or something? "I'm going to go take a look around before the light dies completely. Sit tight."

He'd hoped to catch a glimpse of air traffic, but the clouds he'd seen rolling in earlier on their march obscured the sky. He didn't see any lights reflecting off them, either, that might indicate a nearby base. He looked around at the ruined buildings, but even when there had been enough light he hadn't seen convenient ways to climb them. Any fall he had here might be fatal – there was no medical assistance, no droid to summon help, and despite Hux's cooperation and flirty behavior, Poe still believed he'd steal Poe's blaster and end him if he could.

Speaking of which, Poe turned back to the shop where they'd taken shelter. Hux had had food, drink, and rest. It wasn't impossible that he might be back on his feet and plotting escape. Poe picked his way back as stealthily as possible, which ended up being not very. But it didn't matter, Hux was still there, unmoved. Poe could only barely see his outline.

"It's me," Poe said.

"Imagine a witty comeback."

"What?"

"I'm very tired. Imagine your own witty comeback. I can't think of one."

Poe stood there silently, finally (finally!) convinced that Hux was exhausted, near-death, and not planning anything nefarious. It had been very hard to believe. He lowered himself on the other side of the bundle of coat and girl. He had to sleep, too, and he might as well get to it while it was safe to do so.

Someone shook him awake. Small hands, not much pressure. Poe blinked and started. Light sleeper, he wasn't. It was too dark to see more than forms and outlines. The nearest one spoke with the voice of the little girl. "Armyjudge is shaking and he won't wake up."

"What?"

"Armyjudge is shaking and he won't wake up."

Poe had heard her the first time, but it took a moment for his sleepy brain to track down Hux's first name and link it to the girl's mispronunciation of it. "Okay." Poe sat up and fumbled in the dark toward the other man. He was indeed shaking. Shivering was good, right? It was when someone stopped that hypothermia was irrecoverable. Right?

He didn't know. He knew starfighter engines and droid innards and how to use blaster. When it came down to it, he wasn't much better educated than Finn. "Hux? Hux? Can you hear me?" He turned to the girl when there was no response. "Hey. Get on the other side of him. Open your coat a little. Put yourself against him and cover him as much as you can with the coat, but keep yourself warm. We're going to share our warmth with him. That should help."

The girl complied. Poe opened his flight suit down the middle and snuggled up on the side he was on. The girl asked, "You're not going to let him die?"

"No." Disgusting as it was, he wasn't going to stand by and do nothing while someone froze to death right next to him. Hux must have been in even worse shape than Poe had thought. His assumption that the man had been faking (or at least exaggerating) his suffering so as to gain leniency or a surprise was clearly a false one.

"Okay," the girl said. "I don't want him to die, either."

Poe sighed at the misplaced innocence of a child, who had no idea who she was defending. "What did he do for you? Where did you even meet him?"

"I was at Jasta's house when it blew up. He was walking by with the white-armor soldiers. They all died, too."

Poe's brows shot up and he pulled in a breath as he realized what had happened earlier that day. "Jasta's house," he said quietly. "How many people were in Jasta's house?"

"Mumma and Puppa had come to pick me up because there was war started after lunch. Jasta was there. She gave us classes while Mumma and Puppa worked. There was Camine and Ped there, too, for class. But they all died." She said simply. "I crawled outside and Armyjudge found me."

Poe felt ice in his gut that had nothing to do with the cold. He scooted even closer to Hux, stripping the man’s glove off and putting Hux’s icy hand against his belly, under Poe’s shirt. "You'd better not die, you bastard," Poe muttered. He shook his head, still feeling gutted by the child's words.

Hux's miserable shivering continued for some time, long enough that Poe was starting to see a grayness outside instead of pitch black. The girl had returned to sleep as far as Poe could tell. Hux's spasms of shivering had become intermittent and his breathing had deepened. "Can you hear me?" Poe asked.

Hux's hand (warm now) moved once against Poe's belly, stirring hairs and touching sensitive skin. "Yes. I did not know you were willing to take such extreme measures. My comment about your irresponsibility was misplaced."

Poe sighed. He touched Hux's hand lightly. "When it gets light, I'm going to let you go. I want you to take the kid to the First Order. Get some medical care."

Hux was silent for a long beat. "What happened to change your mind?"

"I was the one who killed her family."

"What?"

"The kid."

"Lana?"

"That's her name?"

"Yes."

"Oh. She thinks you're named Army Judge."

Hux snorted softly. "It's better than 'Hugs'. But explain what you said earlier – you killed her family?"

"That was my x-wing. Above the city. I spun through a roll and caught a glimpse of white – a squad of stormtroopers escorting an officer or two. When the nose of the ship came around, I fired off a quick shot. Four blasts of the turbolasers. One hit between two troopers. They were blown to either side. One blast hit another guy. A trooper, I think. Vaporized him. The other two overshot and hit the building beyond, exploding there and collapsing it. I lost sight of the rest in the dust and fire … and then I was on to the next target, gunning for that emplacement that was screwing up our air assault."

"Collateral damage," Hux said, either dismissive or contemplative. Poe couldn't tell.

"I shot up a school and killed kids to get at you. It's not worth it. And you're right – what am I going to do with her when I get to the Resistance? I don't know how long it's going to take me to find them. She has no family to be reunited with. Finn grew up … a problem, but he did grow up. It's a life of killing people and I need to … reconsider my choices."

Hux turned his hand slowly. His fingers slid against Poe's palm until they were holding hands like a handshake. "I was serious about my offer. Come with me. You won't be killed. You'll be celebrated."

Poe sighed. He rested his forehead against Hux's shoulder. "No," he said after too long a pause.

"You said she'd kill you if you let me go. That's only if she finds out. I have no need to inform anyone about my humiliating captivity where I was too injured and dispirited to even attempt escape."

Poe lifted his head. There was enough light that he could see Hux's amused expression. "Yeah, but you'll still have the blackmail material on me that I let you go." Not that it mattered. Leia wouldn't _really_ kill him. Hux didn't need to know that.

"Hm," Hux said, sort of like a purr. "That's true."

"You like that?" He gave Hux's hand a light squeeze.

Hux squeezed back. "Very much." That was definitely a purr.

The girl shifted and stretched, looking up to see Hux's face. "Armyjudge! You're alive!" She smiled and it was a pure thing.

Poe pushed himself upward. Hux's hand lingered in his until Poe pulled free to refasten his flight suit against the chill air.

"Yes," Hux said, turning to the girl. "I am alive. You will have to help me today as we will be doing a great deal more walking and I won't be able to go very fast. Poe will be leaving us and we will return to the Order."

"Why …?" She looked at Poe uncertainly. Poe stood.

"I have a long march ahead of me," Poe said truthfully. "I don't think he'd make it and I'll go faster without you two."

"You just don't want to carry me," she said, looking disdainful about it.

Poe chuckled dryly. "Yeah, maybe that's it."

Hux got to his feet unsteadily. The girl stood next to him, taking the dead hand that couldn't hold hers. She looked at it with worry. Hux switched her to his other hand. "We should get going. There may be a dawn scouting patrol we can flag down."

"And," Poe said, "that I need to stay out of sight from. I'll see you later, then." He paused to consider his words. They'd come out automatically.

"That seems unlikely," Hux said.

Poe stepped closer, looking up at him intently. "If that's the case, then, and we're never going to talk about this with anyone … then …" He looked from Hux's lips to his eyes, casting discretion to the wind to find out if the few scrambled signals he'd picked up had meant anything. Hux hesitated. Color bloomed in his pale cheeks. He leaned in and they kissed lightly, for a long time, in no hurry. When they parted, Poe said, "Something to remember me by."

Hux just stared at him, in wonder it seemed.

Poe left.

* * *

"And that was it," Poe said, wrapping up his debrief. It had been a short report, with little reason to go into detail about his on-foot travel after being shot down. "I saw the Order scout ships this morning and noticed they were staying away from the west, so that's how I ended up here."

"Well," General Ematt said as he rose, "we'll get you back in an x-wing in no time."

Poe stepped around the table, making a gesture to pause the man. "Wait. Um … I don't want to go back in the air. For … a while. I'd like to look at other options, maybe reconstruction or something diplomatic."

"Diplomatic? Like the espionage missions you were doing?"

"No. Not that. I don't know. Let me think about it a little. I just … the 'shooting people thing' isn't working for me anymore. Let me see what else I can do. Where there's no chance I'll be hitting people … I don't want to be hitting."

The general nodded. "That's fine. You've earned a break."

"Yeah," Poe nodded. "A second chance, maybe."


End file.
